Free Browser and End-to-End Testing Tools
Which browser, end-to-end and visual testing tools a startup can test its app with for free today, how many test runs or minutes the free plan or trial covers, whether the core is open source, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, read from each tool's own page.
Free allowances read on each provider's own pages, all checked on or after . Testing services change their free allowances from time to time: confirm the terms on the provider's page before you wire it into your pipeline.
Browser and end-to-end testing tools a startup can use for free today include Cypress (500 test results a month, free), Playwright (Open source under Apache 2.0), TestMu AI (LambdaTest) (2-minute live sessions, renewed monthly), Selenium (Open source under Apache 2.0), and Chromatic ($0 a month, 5,000 billed snapshots). Each of the 13 free offers below links to the tool's page that states it, with its main limit, whether the core is open source, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs.
End-to-end tests click through the app like a user would and catch the bug before a customer does. The leading test frameworks are free and open source, and cloud services add real browsers, dashboards and visual reviews with a free allowance or a trial.
The headline rarely tells you how far it goes. A free plan can cap test results or screenshots a month, limit parallel sessions or browsers, or start as a trial of a few minutes. Each tool below shows what is free, its main limit, whether the core is open source, whether a card is needed and what the first paid plan costs, quoted from the tool's own page with the date we read it.
Which tools we picked and the order they appear in are our editorial choices; the terms are the providers'. Some of these providers pay us a referral commission when someone signs up through our link: those links are labeled, and they play no part in which tools are listed or where.
Cloud testing services with a free plan or trial
Real browsers and devices, test dashboards and visual reviews, with a free allowance or trial.
- 1
Cypress
Cypress tests in CI on a standing free plan
Cypress Cloud's Starter plan is free with no credit card and includes 500 test results a month for 10 users. The Cypress App itself is free and open source, and the first paid Cloud plan is Team at $67 a month billed annually.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: cypress.io)
- First paid plan
- Team: $67 a month, billed annually (source: cypress.io)
- 2
TestMu AI (LambdaTest)
Quick live checks on real devices, free for life
TestMu AI's free live testing gives limited 2-minute sessions that renew monthly and are free for life. Its free automation plan gives 100 lifetime minutes with 2 parallel sessions, and paid Automation Cloud starts at $99 a month.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: testmuai.com)
- 3
Chromatic
Visual snapshot tests for a Chrome-only UI
Chromatic's Free plan is $0 a month with 5,000 billed snapshots, and it tests on Chrome only. Its Starter plan is $179 a month for 35,000 billed snapshots.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: chromatic.com)
Start free at ChromaticTerms read on chromatic.com on Chromatic: the free allowance and how to start - 4
Percy
Visual diffs with 5,000 screenshots a month, free
Percy's free plan gives 5,000 screenshots a month with access to its core features. Paid plans start at 10,000 screenshots a month, and the page does not show their prices.
- What's free
- 5,000 screenshots a month (source: percy.io)
- First paid plan
- Plans from 10,000 screenshots a month (source: percy.io)
- 5
Testim
Low-code web tests on a free Community plan
Testim's trials revert to a free Community plan when they end, and the page says there is a limit of one Community plan per organization. The page does not state paid plan prices.
- 6
BrowserStack
Trying Live and Automate before buying a plan
BrowserStack's free trial gives 30 minutes of Live cross-browser testing and 60 minutes of Automate, and trial Live access is limited. The first paid plan, Team Pro, is $150 a month billed annually.
Start free at BrowserStackTerms read on browserstack.com on BrowserStack: the free allowance and how to start - 7
Sauce Labs
Trying automated and live testing for 28 days
Sauce Labs' free account starts a 28-day trial with 60 automated and live testing minutes and up to 3 virtual machines in parallel, with no credit card. Its first paid plan, Live Testing, is $39 a month billed annually.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: saucelabs.com)
Start free at Sauce LabsTerms read on saucelabs.com on Sauce Labs: the free allowance and how to start - 8
Currents
Trying a test-results dashboard for 14 days
Currents gives a 14-day free trial with access to all features and up to 10k test results, with no credit card. Its Scale plan is $49 a month billed monthly.
- Payment card
- No card needed (source: currents.dev)
- First paid plan
- Scale: $49 a month, billed monthly (source: currents.dev)
- 9
Applitools
Trying visual AI testing before the Starter plan
Applitools offers a free trial of its Starter plan, which is $667 a month paid annually. The pricing page does not say how long the trial runs or what it includes.
Start free at ApplitoolsTerms read on applitools.com on Applitools: the free allowance and how to start
Free and open-source test frameworks
Write and run browser tests yourself, free and open source.
- 1
Playwright
Code-based end-to-end tests across three browsers
Playwright is an open-source test framework from Microsoft, licensed under Apache 2.0. It supports Chromium, WebKit and Firefox on Windows, Linux and macOS, and it runs on your own machines and in your CI.
Start free at MicrosoftTerms read on mcr.microsoft.com on Playwright: the free allowance and how to start - 2
Selenium
Teams with existing Selenium suites in many languages
Selenium is a browser automation tool, and all code and documentation from the project is licensed under Apache 2.0. It gives full control over Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari.
- 3
WebdriverIO
JavaScript teams testing web, mobile and desktop
WebdriverIO is an open-source test framework run by its community, and its home page states that no paid tier or feature gates exist. It runs in Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge.
Start free at WebdriverIOTerms read on webdriver.io on WebdriverIO: the free allowance and how to start - 4
Maestro
Mobile app flows run locally at no cost
Maestro is free and open source for building, running and debugging flows locally with the CLI or Studio. Its paid device cloud is $250 per device a month.
- Open source
- Open source (source: maestro.dev)
- First paid plan
- Cloud: $250 per device a month (source: maestro.dev)
Developer startup programs
Programs from developer tool companies that give startups credits or free months on paid plans.
Also useful for founders
Referral links, picked for fit and ordered by fit (70%) and what a signup earns us (30%), at no cost to you. They never change this page's ranking.
ScraperAPIScraping API that handles proxies, browsers and CAPTCHAs for you1,000 API creditsReferral link
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ColdIQOne API and MCP server for B2B sales data from 40+ providers300 free creditsReferral linkCompare the top options
How this comparison is built
The list covers browser, end-to-end and visual testing tools a founder can use for free today without applying to a program. The order and the "best for" notes are our editorial reading of each tool's terms. Every term comes from the tool's own pricing or help page on the date shown, never from a third-party list; follow each link for the full conditions. A cap on test runs, minutes or parallel sessions can matter more than the headline, so the comparison quotes them wherever the provider states them. Some of these tools pay StartupPerks a referral commission, and their links are labeled as referral links; that decides neither whether nor where a tool appears, and no tool pays for a placement on this page.
Read the full methodologyCommon questions
What are the best free browser testing tools?
Start with a free framework: Playwright and Selenium are open source under Apache 2.0, and WebdriverIO has every feature free. By the terms each service states, Cypress Cloud's free plan records 500 test results a month, Chromatic gives 5,000 snapshots and Percy 5,000 screenshots a month.
Is BrowserStack free?
BrowserStack offers a free trial of 30 minutes of Live testing and 60 minutes of Automate. Team Pro costs $150 a month, billed annually.
Is Cypress free?
Cypress Cloud's free plan includes 500 test results a month for up to 10 users. Team costs $67 a month, billed annually.
Is there free visual regression testing?
Chromatic's free plan includes 5,000 snapshots a month in Chrome, and Percy's 5,000 screenshots a month.
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